The European Commission has offered member states to release “certain funds” from Russian banks frozen by EU sanctions to help the resumption of trade in agricultural and food products, including wheat and fertilizers, according to a document seen on Tuesday. by AFP.
The EU “wants to make it perfectly clear that nothing in the sanctions is stopping the transport of grain out of Russia or Ukraine,” a European diplomat told AFP on condition of anonymity. The Europeans are under pressure from their African partners who imported more than half of their wheat from Ukraine or Russia before the conflict triggered by the Kremlin.
“The competent authorities of a Member State may authorize the release of certain frozen funds or economic resources belonging to banks (…) following having established that these funds or economic resources are necessary for the purchase, import or the transport of agricultural and food products, including wheat and fertilizers”, specifies the proposal submitted to the Member States.
Seven Russian banks – Bank Rossiya, Promsvyaebank, VEB-RF (or Vnesheconombank; VEB), Otkritie FC Bank (formerly known as NOMOS Bank), Novikombank, Sovcombank (formerly known as Buycombank) and VTB Bank – are affected by this derogation.
The provision has been submitted to the ambassadors of the EU states in Brussels and if it is accepted, a written procedure to have it validated by the capitals will be organized on Wednesday in order to publish the measure in the Official Journal of the EU on Thursday, explained a diplomat at AFP.
